Lelouch of the Dominion
by AddieBiscuit
Summary: One mistake changed everything, a belief that his comrades would accept him as their leader after delivering his miracles. Betrayed by those he aided, he is rescued by sheer luck and timing. However, his peaceful existence in Area Eleven is shattered, his belief that Japan was ready for change a childish notion. There was only power, and it was power he needed to change the world.
1. Chapter 1

Lelouch ran. He felt the blood seeping from the wound in his side. How could he be so careless? How could he be so stupid as to trust terrorists with his identity? Cursing in irritation at the wound, the reminder of his stupidity, he ran.

In hindsight, it had been rather obvious that he was still dealing with terrorists, even if they called themselves a resistance. He should have known that revealing as much as he did would only end badly. He had managed to escape Shinjuku Ghetto's residential area, earning a mix of surprised, worried, and terrified looks from the locals as he heard Tamaki's shouting behind him.

A flash of pink. No. There was no way he was that lucky. Euphemia was standing at the memorial, even dressed in casual clothes, there was no disguising that lock of shocking pink hair. Beside her, his only hope.

"Suzaku," Lelouch called, seeing him react as both princess and childhood friend turned in the direction of his voice. The pink-haired princess looked like she'd seen a ghost, then turned an interesting shade of green upon seeing Lelouch clutching his side, blood still dripping from his other injuries. It was Suzaku that acted without hesitation, drawing his sidearm as two more men, likely plainclothes police or off-duty soldiers drew their weapons and fired on the terrorists.

When the first of their number fell, a fresh recruit that Lelouch didn't know, the others scattered. Stumbling forward another step, Lelouch's vision darkened as he heard someone call out his name and he knew nothing more.

* * *

Euphemia sat in the hospital's waiting room, though most people gave her a wide berth when she was surrounded by a dozen men in suits, wringing her hands nervously as she awaited the return of the doctor that had taken her half-brother into surgery. "It will be alright, princess, Dr. Hawthorne is our finest surgeon."

Nodding her thanks to the nurse's assurance, Euphemia leaned against the wall as her personal cellphone rang. The caller ID informed her that it was her brother Schneizel that was calling. She recalled seeing him together with Lelouch in their youth, the older with the younger on his lap as he read countless books that Euphemia found to be nonsense until years later. "Hello, Schneizel, how have you been?" Euphemia asked.

"Euphie, I'm doing well. I heard from the reports, is it true? Did they really find Lelouch after all these years?" the second prince asked, an edge of skepticism leaking into his voice. And why wouldn't he be suspicious, almost a decade without a word and one of their lost siblings suddenly returned was cause for both celebration and confusion.

Nodding to herself, and confirming with a sound of agreement. "I couldn't believe it at first, but it was him, I'm certain of it. If . . . if Lelouch is alive, do you think that maybe, Nunnally is too?" Euphemia hazarded that it was plausible, though how a blind and crippled girl would survive in a war zone was beyond even Euphemia's wildest fantasies.

"It . . . don't get your hopes up, Euphie. It's miracle enough that Lelouch escaped the destruction of Japan, two miracles is far too much of a stretch for anyone." Schneizel cautioned, unwilling to get perhaps the most innocent of his siblings' hopes too high in case it was all for nothing.

Euphemia paused as someone began talking to Schneizel on his end of the line. " . . . certain? Ashford . . . I understand, yes. I'll send someone over right away." It wasn't possible, the odds of them surviving that long, remaining undetected that long were too impossible to comprehend. "Euphemia, I just received word from the OSI. They found a girl matching Nunnally's description at Ashford Academy in the settlement. I want you to go and ascertain whether or not she is in fact our Nunnally."

* * *

Milly Ashford could say, without a shadow of a doubt, that everything had gone wrong. Nearly a decade ago, Lelouch had sought shelter with her family. Her grandfather at least, her birth parents being less than useless in her upbringing. His promise to her had stuck with them through thick and thin, even if she was certain that he had forgotten.

Now he was in the hospital, surrounded by imperial soldiers. It was very likely that Euphemia, god bless the pretty prink princess for her kind heart but damn her to hell for throwing a wrench into her brother-in-all-but-blood's plans for a quiet life, had recognized him.

Now was the time to tell Nunnally, to get her to safety. Lelouch would never forgive her if anything happened to his little sister. Abandoning all pretenses of her usual calm façade, she ran to the student council room, dialing Sayoko on her cellphone. "Sayoko, hurry, find Nunnally and get her someplace safe."

"Of course, mistress."

Not a moment later, the school was in an uproar as a limousine with the heraldry of the Li Britannia line was admitted through the main gate as Milly rushed out to meet the arriving party. It was too early, there wasn't enough time. Two men exited the vehicle, one easily recognizable as Jeremiah Gottwald, the leader of Area Eleven's Purist faction, the other, a tall, slight man in glasses in a knight-of-honor's attire.

Following them was Euphemia li Britannia herself, clad in a rather ornate white and pink dress, followed by five men in combat gear from the accompanying military transport. Milly admitted to herself that the princess cut a rather imposing figure surrounded by such deadly men, a far cry from the slightly ditzy girl she recalled from her visits to Pendragon as a child.

Milly slipped back into the mask of the daughter of a notable family in Area Eleven and met her with a shallow curtsey. "Princess Euphemia, welcome to Ashford Academy. I am Camellia Ashford, president of the high school division of the student council and granddaughter of the school's founder and superintendent, Reuben Ashford."

Euphemia returned the curtsey with one of her own, the knights giving their own slight bows in return. "Of course, miss Ashford. I'm on an errand and I hoped you could assist me," Euphemia said, the two knights taking up position at her sides as the soldiers dispersed with a command from the tall, thin knight. "Where are my manners, may I introduce you to Margrave Jeremiah Gottwald and Sir Gilbert Guilford."

"A pleasure, my lords. Now, what did you need from Ashford Academy?" Milly asked, silently hoping that the princess was simply here to attend the school, though that brought problems of its own in covering Nunnally's tracks to ensure the two never met.

The princess raised an eyebrow in surprise. "You know why I'm here, I'm here to return Nunnally to Lelouch. They're to report to the homeland as soon as Lelouch is able to travel. It's so nice to learn that they're both still alive." Euphemia said, giving Milly a questioning look.

"I'm afraid you're mistaken, your highness. Nunnally Lamperouge may be similar to the princess Nunnally, but Lelouch told me that Nunnally didn't survive the invasion, and he was alone when he came to grandfather . . ." Milly responded smoothly, not letting a hint of fear enter her tone or posture.

Euphemia's mood visibly darkened. "I had hoped . . . when we found out that Lelouch was alive, and the report that there was a girl matching Nunnally's description was attending the same school as him. Well, we'd hoped that she'd survived."

"I apologize, princess. Was there anything else you needed?" Milly asked.

Looking up, Euphemia sighed. "Take me to Lelouch's room, I might as well have his things retrieved while I'm here, and please, call me Euphie."

"Of course, your . . . Euphie." Milly said, correcting herself, though she didn't fail to notice the expressions on the knights' faces at her casual change of tone. "This way."

Sayoko should have enough time to move Nunnally to the underground shelter, Milly thought as she led Euphemia through several winding hallways, delaying for time, at least until they bumped into Suzaku.

Blinking, the Japanese boy smiled when he saw Euphemia. "Princess Euphemia, I heard you were arriving. Were you about to see Princess Nunnally?"

* * *

Author's Note:

Hello and welcome to my first attempt at writing fanfiction. I've been browsing anonymously for some time now and I've worked up the courage to write my own take on Code Geass. I'm in love with the universe and I felt that it's my turn to give back to the Code Geass community with a work of my own.

Let me know what you all think, advice and criticism is appreciated.

AddieBiscuit


	2. Chapter 2

Schneizel el Britannia, prime minister of Britannia, hated his father. From ignoring the deaths of several of his heirs and consorts, though while he didn't care about them personally the fact remained that there was no retaliation for the murders of such people was concerning to say nothing of his casual disregard for those that did attempt to please him. While Schneizel could understand that his sire demanded perfection in every aspect of their lives, and that they were to kill and cheat their way to the top to prove Britannia's creed true, he could not help but hate his father for wasting resources on invasions of useless countries.

Japan was a waste of Sakuradite. The empire would have to strip mine the entire country to get every deposit of the superconductor or risk it falling back into Federation or Europian hands. The fact that they were basically forced to give away two-thirds of the precious mineral to stop a second invasion of their holdings was far worse for the superpower than people were led to think.

The garrison in Antarctica had reported low morale on such a dead-end post, not to mention the resources going towards terraforming a habitable base that didn't freeze over every few weeks for zero gain. It was too far from any country to launch an invasion, there were no resources going out of the base since Britannia had long phased out the use of fossil fuels, and the location itself held zero strategic value.

Siberia. Of all the places to put a base, it was in a tiny patch of Britannian-held Siberia that cost too much to continue to hold against the rapidly rising Neo-Russian empire. Again, it wasn't oil, for Britannia had long abandoned its use and Russia had long depleted the reserves in that portion of the country.

Schneizel couldn't understand it. Why was their father wasting so much resources on such useless ventures. The rapid expansion and tax income from subjugated areas had removed nearly eighty percent of the national debt, but with the fighting becoming bogged down and the only option open engaging one of the other superpowers in open conflict, there was little need for such a large standing army when there was no conquest to be had anymore. It was a waste of resources and manpower that could have went to uplifting the Areas to a higher standard of living, which might influence smaller countries to petition to enter Britannia as opposed to fighting it.

Only Lelouch had understood, even at his young age. He was a wildcard now, one that he did not understand anymore. It had been nearly a decade since his disappearance, and no new information about his mother's murder was revealed that could entice him to join his side. The trail had gone long cold following a redacted report on the visitor manifest from the Aries Villa.

Was that it? Was it something so mundane as the identity of the visitor from that night? There was only one name on that list, would it take so much effort to uncover it? The gains from having Lelouch on his side, and grooming him to be his second, was far more valuable an asset than Schneizel could probably safely estimate at this time. He'd send out feelers in the meantime. "Kanon, get me Captain Macmillan from Intelligence," Schneizel folded his hands together. "There's something I need him to do."

* * *

Lelouch awoke to the steady sound of a heartbeat monitor beside him. For a moment, he wondered just what had happened to him. He remembered running, he remembered pain, he remembered fear. It was only when he noticed the uniformed knight standing before him that he remembered his own stupidity. "Jeremiah Gottwald," Lelouch said carefully.

"Prince Lelouch, forgive the intrusion," the margrave replied with a deep bow. "I am here to ensure your safety," he said.

"Like you were supposed to ensure my mother's? Tell me, Lord Gottwald, why would someone who subscribed to the Purists' ideals ever consider being a member of the commoner empress's royal guard?" Lelouch retorted, inwardly surprised at the sudden change in Jeremiah's behavior.

His shoulders slumped, his eyes downcast, he looked like a man defeated. "It is as you say, my prince. I was there that night at Aries Villa, when we were dismissed. Though I attempted to argue otherwise, the empress insisted she wished to be alone for her meeting."

This set off alarm bells in Lelouch's head, nothing had been said in the investigation that his mother's royal guard had been dismissed for the evening. "Why did she order you away?"

"I do not know, your highness. She only ever sent us away when the emperor came to see her, and even then she kept a pistol on her person at all times and we were never more than a minute's response time away."

So it was him, Lelouch thought. "Then the emperor was in Aries Villa when my mother died." He left the unspoken notion that it was the emperor who had killed his mother, the woman that had won him the throne.

"No, your highness."

"You just said that the only person who would warrant having the royal guard disperse was the emperor." Lelouch said, thoroughly annoyed and not the least bit curious at this new information.

Gottwald seemed unsure whether to continue, however the man frowned and continued. "The emperor was always announced to us, he never needed anonymity when dealing with anything in Pendragon. The only listed name that night was a man named Vincent Valerius, and though he did not appear in our database, Marianne had him admitted right away and sent us away."

Lelouch became quiet for a moment. Whoever this Vincent character was was someone that his mother trusted explicitly to not need a background check and close enough to warrant her guard withdrawn. "You've given me a lot to think about, Gottwald." Lelouch said. "I need some time alone."

"Of course, my prince."

* * *

Marianne's spawn was alive, that was unacceptable, VV snarled. He had been so sure as well, Charles was focusing too much on Marianne to pay any attention to him. In recent years, he had even become reluctant towards him. He knew. Charles knew his spawn had survived, somehow survived the bombing of the Kururugi shrine, survived the attack on the convoy.

VV grudgingly admitted it was brilliant on Charles's part to remove his two children from Pendragon. Not clever enough. The boy would be in the limelight, it wouldn't be odd for someone to attempt to assassinate a member of the royal family. Especially in Japan, now that the other blonde idiot was dead and it was a girl in charge, it would be far easier to be rid of that accursed slut's spawn.

Yes, he would send her. It was perfect, there was no flaw, she would do as he asked without question. Even if they were born from CC's cells, they were his children, his perfect children. They would obey him, only him, nobody else.

Or would they, a small voice echoed. It was her again, that damned ghost-woman. It was why he needed to kill god, to kill humanity. There would be silence, finally, after all this time. People wouldn't think, they would only exist, go about their mundane existences while VV could finally be together with Charles forever and nobody could stop them.

Firstly, the boy would die. Then, Charles's other children would die, there was no need for them when Ragnarok was complete. Free will would end and all would be right with the world. Nobody would lie, nobody would cheat. He would be accepted, people would love him. Yes, nothing else mattered, not even her.

"Father. You summoned me?" a girl's voice came from the door. Yes, she was here. This was exactly what he wanted. No fuss. Punctual. Polite. If only those others could be like her. If everyone else was like her there would be no problems, everyone would be perfect, but none more perfect than him.

Schooling himself back under control, VV turned to address her. "Sancia, gather your sisters. I have a mission for you."

* * *

Author's Notes:

Well, writing VV as I imagine him is mildly disturbing . . . alright, pretty downright creepy.

Anyway, welcome and many thanks to those who've read, favorited and followed the story. I've kept the chapters relatively short so that I can produce continuous updates and I'm not really a fan of long chapters because writer's block is probably going to hit hard if I make long chapters, so here's hoping I can prevent them with nice, short chapters.

As always, I appreciate reviews, let me know what you think about this story so far.

AddieBiscuit


	3. Chapter 3

Perhaps it was time to reevaluate his plans for world domination. Charles zi Britannia was many things, an empire builder, an iron-fisted ruler, a master orator, but a fool was something he wasn't. He believed the OSI's reports of his son and daughter's death in Area 11, and he threw his support to his brother's plan to conquer the nations necessary to activate the Sword of Akasha.

Of course, Charles forgot that the director of the OSI was in his brother's pocket. Hindsight was indeed 20/20. He did understand his brother's vision for the directorate, had even supported its formation with several key members from the National Intelligence Services and his own personal research division. It was when the entire organisation went rogue, though his brother conveniently forgot to mention that he was still in contact with them and was still its leader following the disappearance of the other three code-bearers that founded the directorate, was entirely too convenient for his tastes.

He'd been played for a fool, that much he was certain of. His brother had gone off the deep end long ago, and not even immortality and regeneration could cure that little cretin's massive fixation for his brother. In other words, his older brother had a massive and misguided need for attention from him, and it had gotten the world embroiled in war because of it. It was something out of a terrible movie plot, but such was his life.

"Bismarck, I need to speak with you, in private." Charles said, turning to return to his study as his oldest friend gestured for the royal stormtroopers to withdraw.

The emperor's study was something that nobody had seen besides himself and Bismarck. The servants who cleaned the room were under geass to forget everything within the room upon closing its doors, but that the occasional servant broke free of his geass and had to be disposed of was inconsequential compared to what the emperor kept within.

Books lined the walls, old volumes from his predecessors' collection, current volumes that the emperor himself enjoyed. To one wall, in black marble and gold lettering, were the names of his family that he'd lost to his own dream. He never forgot them, and the slowly growing list of names was a weight that he would carry to his grave. His hand lingered on the name of his beloved Marianne, and for a moment he closed his eyes and remembered happier times. "How are the preparations for the Malleus project?" the emperor asked his knight.

"Recruitment has begun and screening has provided seven potential inquisitors, it helps that we recovered Cevorym and Xymalim from the Middle East before they could escape to EU territory," Bismarck reported, his own gaze lingering on the empress's name. "Admiral Gerald Hackett is beginning preparations for Jormungandr as Earl Asplund has begun development on the gravitas system."

"Have I done a good job, old friend?" Charles mused aloud, rubbing the bridge of his nose as he opened a cabinet and pulled a bottle from within. "I wanted it all, and look where it's gotten me. I can't even look my brother in the eye without wanting to kill him for what he's done." Charles sighed, taking a long pull from the bottle.

Bismarck sighed, putting a hand on his emperor's shoulder. "Your majesty, forgive my saying this, but you cannot doubt everything you've done until now. The only thing we have now is to move forward."

Charles grinned wryly. "What would I do without you?"

"Probably drop your brother into the Marianas trench," Bismarck remarked as he took his leave.

Turning from his knight, he glanced once more to his wife's name. Though she may live within Anya Alstreim, she would never again return to her old body. Hardening his gaze, he returned to his desk, he had arrangements to make.

* * *

Nunnally looked out over Aries Villa as she marvelled at the sight. Sight. Such a strange thing after nearly a decade of darkness. The colors were even more vibrant than she remembered. From the yellows and reds of the flowerbeds at the villa to the deep purples and dark oak of the villa's walls and curtains. She didn't realise just how much she missed the simple words on a book, or to be able to see the food prepared by the staff. Movement at the edge of her vision caught her attention.

"Princess, please, don't leave without someone to watch you." a panicked voice came from behind as footsteps sounded as someone ran to catch up to Nunnally.

Turning, Nunnally regarded her two 'ladies-in-waiting'. The taller of the two was a pale blonde with soulful grey eyes who had a perpetually somewhat sad or thoughtful look on her face. The other, who shouted, was a strawberry-blonde with fiery red eyes. The two had been assigned by the head of the estate, a rather severe looking young woman named Sancia. "Lucretia, Alice," Nunnally greeted. "I'm sorry if I worried the two of you, I just had to look around the villa."

Lucretia, the pale blonde, shook her head. "Don't worry about us, your highness. Rather, please be careful as parts of Aries Villa are still being renovated. Lady Edefeldt instructed us to keep you away from those portions of the villa as you may be injured by accident," the girl explained as she took control of the wheelchair and guided Nunnally from the balcony with Alice trailing behind her.

"You don't need to keep calling me 'highness', just Nunnally works fine," Nunnally said with a smile as they returned to the main hall. "I would like to see the library, if that's alright with the two of you."

Behind her back, Alice put a hand to her ear and after a few seconds shook her head. Lucretia nodded. "Of course, your . . . Nunnally. Though most of books are still being brought out of storage."

Nunnally nodded. "Then there's still work to be done before brother returns."

"Which reminds me, you have tea in an hour with Princess Euphemia and Empress Orianna, we should get you ready." Lucretia reminded as the two left to return to Nunnally's room.

As they left, Alice glanced around and knelt before Sancia. "Report," she said cooly.

"Everything is proceeding as planned, the princess Nunnally suspects nothing and we have kept her unaware of the additions being made to Aries Villa." Alice said.

Nodding, Sancia turned to walk away. "Be sure it remains that way," she said over her shoulder.

"Of course, sister."

* * *

It had been more than a month since Lelouch had been revealed to have survived. It didn't surprise him that Nunnally was made to go on ahead to Pendragon while he recovered. So it was when Lelouch was finally given a clean bill of health from the doctors, the welcome parade for his arrival was remarkable in the large turnout.

The city of Pendragon was understandably in an uproar. It wasn't everyday that a presumably dead prince turned up alive and well. Then again, few of the royal family were as well known as Marianne the Flash.

The streets of the capital were busier than normal, the route from Pendragon palace along St. Darwin boulevard was lined with soldiers from the emperor's personal regiment to cordon the approaching convoy of honour guard Sutherland knightmares bearing the pennants with the crests of the li Britannia and vi Britannia lines, a blue swan with a crown of laurels on a white field and a red lion clutching a sword on a black banner respectively. Behind them, the limousine carrying Lelouch and Euphemia, who had picked him up from the airbase, followed behind with an emotionless Lelouch looking on the proceedings and a beaming Euphemia waved to the gathered masses.

"Lelouch, I think you should give father a chance. He's been different since you were found alive, as hard as it is to believe, he's become more of a . . . well, a father." Euphemia said, still waving to the crowds. "I think the Empress Marianne's death affected him more than he would willingly reveal."

Shaking his head, Lelouch returned his gaze to the crowd, picking out the third observer he noticed. "Perhaps. It won't change what he did, he abandoned a ten-year-old boy and his crippled, blind sister in the middle of a war zone." Lelouch replied bitingly, though he knew it wasn't fair of him to take his frustrations out on Euphemia, one of maybe six of his half-siblings he could stand to be around. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped at ~ Euphie, what's wrong?" he asked as she had a thoughtful expression on her face.

"Lelouch, the OSI operatives who shadowed you in Japan reported your death to the emperor three weeks before the invasion began. That was about the time you stopped replying to our mail and messages." Euphemia answered her brother's question though she was far more concerned with the implications of the OSI feeding false information to the emperor of all people. "I'll look into it more later, but please, try not to do anything . . . pardon my French, stupid."

Blinking at Euphemia's choice of words, Lelouch nodded as the limousine's doors swung open to the reception hall at Pendragon palace. "I understand sister, I'll try not to speak my mind."

"That's all I ask, Lelouch." Euphemia sighed resignedly as she walked towards her office and two uniformed officers took their places behind her as she walked. "Captain Price, have my guards double their watch on Aries Villa. Dame Kruszewski, send an inquiry into the Hereticus archives regarding OSI activity regarding Prince Lelouch and Princess Nunnally. Discreetly."

The clipped response of the two agents came at the same, practiced time. "By your command, inquisitor."

* * *

A/N:

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass, I am poor, please do not sue me.

I. AM. ALIVE.

Not dead, sorry for such a long wait. Family's decided to travel around Europe for the holidays and I was stuck without a good connection where I could work on the story in relative peace.

We're about halfway or so through the introduction that should be setting the stage and the tone for the rest of the story. I hope you're enjoying the story so far. Le me know what you all think.

AddieBiscuit


	4. Chapter 4

_In other news, the Holy Britannian Empire has begun pulling its troops out of illegally occupied Baghdad and Cairo. Across the globe in the Russian Empire, local news has reported movement from Britannian forces in Golden Horn Bay. Russian forces have reported the rapid disassembly of the monitoring station and garrison at Vladivostok as well as the arrival of the infamous Britannian Third Fleet._

 _Public opinion on pulling out of Vladivostok has garnered mixed reactions from the public. In recent history, the Battle for Vladivostok was one of the bloodiest campaigns on the part of the Britannian Empire. An estimated six thousand casualties on the empire's part to secure the city included the emperor's son, the fifteenth prince Castor Rui Britannia, the commander of the theatre's third army._

 _Regardless, military strategists see this as a move to lull a sense of security into both the Chinese Federation and Russian Empire with not only the Third Fleet, but also the Fifth Fleet in position around the waters of Japan and the Philippines._

* * *

Lelouch departed his meeting with the emperor somewhat unsettled. While it was true he would never forgive his father for banishing him and his sister to Japan, the insight into the Directorate was something that unsettled him greatly. An entire research division created to study the human body he could understand, but the knowledge that the empire had code bearers like C.C. as well as geass users, was something that Lelouch had not anticipated.

Maybe the emperor had the best of intentions, but it was always those that paved the path to hell. On the other hand, Lelouch could respect the sentiment that power too dispersed would fracture without an incredibly efficient and therefore implausible form of government. For all its flaws, the system employed by the empire was the most efficient if its head of state was capable of maintaining order.

Regardless, he had chosen his path forward. The empire, for all its flaws, could be guided to bring peace to the world. No matter the cost, he would create a world where people could live in peace, even if it meant selling his soul to the devil in return.

"Lelouch, I apologise that I couldn't make it to your audience. I trust it went well?" Schneizel asked.

Lelouch turned to regard his third oldest brother with a wary look. The empire's white prince was not one that someone crossed lightly. Then again, not just anybody could say that the same prince taught them to read, write and play chess. "Schneizel, you look well," Lelouch responded. "It went well enough, I'm still here, aren't I?"

Giving a laugh that didn't quite reach his eyes, the prime minister shook his head. "As witty as ever, little brother. It's been far too long, care for a game of chess?"

Shaking his head, Lelouch followed Schneizel. "It's not like I'll ever beat you, nobody ever could."

In the prime minister's office, an impressive chess set was already set up on the balcony. Lelouch regarded the onyx and opal chess pieces as Schneizel took his place on the white side of the table and opened with his pawn. "Your move, dear brother."

* * *

Reuben Ashford could say that he was finally at his wit's end. His son and daughter-in-law were determined to run their daughter's life, and while he was sure that she wouldn't make it easy for them, Milly would eventually run out of options, she was simply not groomed for politics the way most noble children were. After all, they were no longer nobility, but that didn't stop Robert and Melissa from attempting to claw their way back.

It was the days that Milly arrived at his office looking beyond tired that truly made him wish that he still had power, so she wouldn't have to be forced into arranged meetings with nobles twice her age to satisfy her parents' ambition. That they had basically abandoned Milly into his care spoke volumes over which they valued more between their titles and their daughter.

Reviewing his investments in the Sakuradite trade, the old scientist rubbed his eyes tiredly. He was getting too old for this. Life was throwing too many curveballs for him to handle quickly enough. Of course, that didn't mean that life wouldn't stop, Reuben thought wearily as his personal terminal rang. He blinked in surprise when it was Aries Villa's number displayed on the monitor.

His son in all but blood looked back at him, looking every bit as tired as Milly had been nearly two hours ago. "Lelouch, it's good to see you again my boy." Reuben nodded in greeting. "You look tired, are you getting enough sleep?"

A dry chuckle was his response. "The same as always, Reuben. Plans to put into action, scheming nobles trying to get back in my good graces," the formerly exiled prince said. "Nunnally sends her regards as well."

"I was wondering, after the ruckus she and Milly caused when the Princess Euphemia arrived."

The two traded stories of the past month, and Reuben found it somewhat cathartic to be able to talk with someone about it. Even while he was here in secret, Lelouch was a confidant of his and he his. It was Lelouch's predictions in the Sakuradite trade following Japan's annexation that gave Reuben the capital to begin Ashford Academy. It was Lelouch that allowed him, somewhat indirectly, to work on the Sutherland Project. It was Lelouch that continued giving him capital whenever he needed, though where the boy was finding millions of pounds sterling that was clean was beyond him.

It was in the early hours of the morning that Lelouch shook his head. "It's been awhile since I've talked to anyone properly, doctors aren't very good conversation and Gottwald is more the type to listen than hold an actual conversation."

Reuben nodded. He knew Jeremiah Gottwald, had been his sponsor to attend the military academy at West Point the same way that he had Marianne. He was a good lad, and had grown into a fine young man, his participation in the Purists notwithstanding. He understood Gottwald's reasons, and was pleasantly surprised to hear that the knight was back serving the family he loved.

"I hear Milly's parents have been giving her trouble again," Lelouch said after a fashion.

Reuben sighed. "That they are, my son and his wife have it in their heads that they can claw their way back into being a part of the nobility."

A knock at the door halted their conversation for a minute. "Come in," Reuben said.

"Grandfather, those bastards." Milly ground out, holding a letter in her hands. "They've gone and done it."

"Milly, what's wrong?" Lelouch and Reuben asked at the same time.

Blinking, the letter in her hand forgotten, she hurried over to the screen where Lelouch's face was a mixture of relief and embarrassment. "Lelouch vi Britannia, never thought that you'd return to your family willingly." Milly admitted, not angry, but rather worried for her surrogate brother's wellbeing.

With another dry laugh, Lelouch smiled. "It's good to see you too, Milly. What's this about those bastards and doing it? Did Shirley finally convince Rivalz to go out with her or something?"

Blinking in surprise, Milly laughed, her first in quite sometime. "Never thought I'd see you play matchmaker, but no. It's my parents. They've gone and betrothed me to some viscount or other." She growled. "They realised they couldn't get their way normally, so they force it on me. All nice and legal too, looks ~ Lelouch, why are you still smiling? This is serious."

Lelouch's grin had grown as he too had experienced the anger that Milly felt towards her parents. "How would you like to ruin your parents' schemes and help me flip the bird to the rest of those stuck up nobles?"

Crumpling the letter in her hand, Milly gave her most confident smile yet. "Where do I sign up?"

* * *

"The Ashfords? What makes them a better choice than the Marshalls?" Schneizel asked as he took one of Lelouch's knights with his queen, frowning as a rook returned the favor by putting his king in check.

"Simply put, the Ashfords still control roughly thirty percent of the Sakuradite industry through their connections to the old Japanese firms. They maintain the largest knightmare R&D facility outside of the mainland. That combined with the fact that Reuben Ashford worked on both the Ganymede and Sutherland projects means that he still has access to a lot of relevant data that your Camelot can still use." Lelouch said, retreating the rook when a pawn was moved to block the way until Schneizel's trap was sprung and Lelouch found himself down another rook and both his bishops in exchange for only one of Schneizel's knights and a pawn.

"And them being your family's oldest supporters has nothing to do with it?" Schneizel asked, moving his other knight forward to block Lelouch's own advance.

A reversal by Lelouch took Schneizel's queen from him as well as his other knight. "It helps, but as you said before, we need allies. They're loyal to me, and we're allies. You get the research data, more say in where the Sakuradite flows, and a well-respected name among the common folk."

Conceding the point, Schneizel shored up his own defences and began his own counterattack. "I'll run it by father, barring anything unusual, I don't see any issues. Shall we call this game a draw?"

Accepting the draw, Lelouch mentally tallied up another draw to his zero-wins versus his older brother. He'd take a small victory when it showed itself, since Schneizel was the far better player than Lelouch would likely ever be. "Then I'd best get back to preparations on my end. With the information Cornelia has, she should be flushing out any of the terrorist cells still active in Area Eleven."

"And these people you recruited from your time in the Knightmare corps? You are certain they are trustworthy?" Schneizel raised an eyebrow, making a move with his pawn.

Nodding, Lelouch mirrored Schneizel's own move. "No less trustworthy, and there are still a ways to go before I ask them."

A series of turns passed by in silence as moves were checked and traps sprung between the two brothers. "I just need you to be careful, brother. We can ill afford to lose you, now that we finally have you back. Making what seemed like an inconsequential move of his pawns towards his brother's lines, he sat back and thought.

* * *

To the Readers:

 **Shiranai Atsune:** The story diverges from canon after the events of "Princess and the Witch", Lelouch's mantra of "If a king does not lead, his subordinates will not follow," by revealing his identity, he wants to form trust within his "inner circle" but him being a Britannian is still too much for them and they attack him. They don't know he's a prince until his survival is announced. There is also no notice on the wiki on what "Milly" is short for, and I like the name Camellia compared to Millicent. Just my personal preference really. Yes, Marianne did call off her guards to Jeremiah's knowledge. No, Nunnally isn't blind anymore here.

Everyone asking about Kallen: Not sure if she'll play a major part of this story. While she is an interesting character, I don't feel she can play a greater role in this story currently as she still hates the royal family. Maybe in the future, who knows.

A/N:

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass, I am poor and write this completely for no profit at all. Please do not sue my ass.

Well, here's the next chapter all. There is one major time jump, the reference to Lelouch's time in the knightmare corps. Chronologically, this and the conversation between Lelouch, Reuben, and Milly towards the end happens roughly three months after Lelouch returns to mainland Britannia.

This is primarily because the portions of him learning the ropes of knightmares vanished in a puff of smoke when my sister closed the tab I was working on without saving. I'll get back to his time in the knightmare corps in later chapters in flashbacks to make up for this, but I should be adding those characters along the next two or three chapters.

Addiebiscut


	5. Chapter 5

Kaname Ohgi was immediately regretting letting Tamaki shoot the Britannian. Actually, as much as they were both Naoto's friends, he regretted talking Naoto into letting Tamaki join their resistance movement. If it wasn't for Tamaki, their heist would have gone off without a hitch and Naoto wouldn't have been stuck in the bombed out lab, about to be crushed by the falling pillar.

If it weren't for Tamaki, Naoto might still be alive, but he could never find it in himself to blame Tamaki. It came with being a teacher, he supposed, to forgive even the worst transgressions. Kallen, on the other hand, didn't share Naoto's vision. Naoto wanted equality, he had said so himself. If Britannia was willing to let the Japanese people govern themselves then Naoto would be willing to disarm. If Britannia were willing to listen to the Japanese people and give them a voice, he'd cooperate with them.

Maybe that was what separated the siblings. Kallen was hot-blooded, driven, and passionate, but she was also incredibly short-sighted. She never stopped to consider the consequences and only ever had a one-track mind. Naoto was the leader, he had the vision and the capability, but he was too willing to sacrifice himself for the mission. "What do I do, Naoto?" Ohgi sighed, rubbing his temple. "I blew our best shot at seeing your dream become real."

Inoue, another of their friends and Naoto's long-time girlfriend, put a hand on the glass of alcohol that almost found its way to Ohgi's lips. "Don't," she chided. "We can't have our leader with a hangover. Don't do this to yourself, Kaname."

It was a show of how close they were that Inoue was willing to use Ohgi's first name. Naoto wouldn't want her in the crossfire. Inoue was too gentle a spirit to want anything to do with fighting. She had a job, and despite all the shit Tamaki spoke about Honorary Britannians, it never came up when Inoue was involved. She didn't belong in a rebellion. "Sorry, Naomi." Ohgi said, shaking his head. "You should never have gotten involved in any of this."

"About that," Inoue sighed. "I . . . I can't keep doing this. With the Britannian, maybe, just maybe we had a shot. You saw what he let us do before that white demon appeared. He could have led us to victory. After that. Well, after that it seems pointless. He laid the groundwork, we could have been fighting for freedom. Now, now we're back to square one. I promised Naoto, you know? That I wouldn't get involved if anything happened to him."

"I understand. To be truthful, I never wanted to continue the resistance. I could just go back to teaching, it's what I'm good at. The others, except maybe Tamaki, they've all got real jobs. Naoto always talked about how he wanted to change Britannia from within, about how it wasn't hopeless and if he got the shot he'd take it. We had it with Zero, now we're nothing. We'd just be getting in the way for people who wanted to just live peacefully."

Inoue gave Ohgi a hug. "Nobody would blame you, well, except maybe Tamaki."

"I guess it's about time we told everyone, it's been quiet since Cornelia took the fight to the larger resistance groups." Ohgi admitted.

Minutes passed by in silence before Ohgi spoke again. "I'm leaving the resistance, I'm not cut out to lead a rebellion, I want to teach students again. Kallen mentioned that there was an opening in her school for a history teacher. Might be a bad idea, but my english isn't too bad and I still have my license and my papers."

Inoue nodded. "I'm quitting too, it was Naoto's dream, but he wanted me to be safe and I can't . . . I just can't do it anymore." Inoue began crying, which was something that Ohgi was unused to. She was always the strong one, even after having to leave Naoto in the rubble, she forged on. It was the past few months catching up with her. "I never told Kallen either, that Naoto and I were together, or that I was sorry for what happened to him."

Ohgi wrapped her in an embrace, two friends simply sharing each other's company.

* * *

"Sorsei, fire to the right and aim at your three o'clock. Kujan, advance forward five hundred meters and fire AP rounds through the wall. Sorsei, fall back a hundred meters. Kujan, take out the approaching attack helicopter on your nine o'clock. Soresei, use your tonfas and weaken the tall building's support columns on the west side. Kujan, fire your rifle at your six." Lelouch ordered as he dodged the return fire of a pair of Glasgow.

Unfolding his tonfa, he rammed it into the first Glasgow as his slash harkens forced the other to eject. "Damn, it's like he's omniscent or something," Lelouch heard Dominic Kujan, his squadmate, remark. He was a rather colourful character, always making jokes or just not saying things correctly, like just then. Not that Lelouch minded really, he was a good pilot and a better marksman.

Meanwhile, their other partner, Marika Sorsei, was something of a black sheep among her more purist relatives. Generally cold, she had warmed up to Lelouch's informality and Dominic's terrible jokes and didn't really share their views on Numbers. Cracking a smirk on their coms, she fired at a gunship that would have nailed the latter with a missile. "You owe me dessert," she said as Lelouch wrapped up the exercise by taking the final point.

Logging out from the simulator, Lelouch got out to stretch. As always, the shorter strawberry blonde was already arguing the nuances of her victory of saving the darker-skinned youth's 'life' during their exercise. "~gotten deductions if you got hit, get over it already." Marika said.

"Aww, Lelouch, Rika's being cold." Dominic whined, irritating the shorter woman who kicked him in the shin. "What was that for?" he demanded.

"Idiot," Marika huffed. "You still owe me your dessert from dinner."

Lelouch shook his head as the two bantered, or rather Dominic attempted to get under Marika's skin as they headed back to the dorms.

Shaking his head from his memory, Lelouch turned to face the monitor as a message came through. Milly's reply.

* * *

Euphemia sat in her office underneath Pendragon palace. The reports from the archive were cross-referenced personally by her and the information was startling. "Kruszewski, do we have a match on the prints from the Kururugi operations?" Euphemia asked, turning over the dossiers on the wetworks squads that carried out the attacks on the Kururugi estate and the convoy that was the last confirmed sighting of Lelouch and Nunnally prior to the end of the war.

Nodding, Euphemia had already ordered the detainment of the remaining members of the assault unit as well as their superiors. "Yes, inquisitor. After using your clearance, they admitted to having been part of the kill teams that attacked both the Kururugi estate as well as those who carried out the ambush on the convoy. However, they claim to not know where their orders came from." In times of war, it wasn't unknown for orders to be issued improperly, however a paper trail from 'Echo Command' a euphemism for the black-ops division linked to the Geass Directorate. "Per your instructions, we have not begun persuading them for any more information."

Euphemia nodded once more, waving her knight out as she returned to scrutinising the budgets allocated towards shell and ghost companies. The trail was clear, the funds transferring normally before disappearing off the grid. Shipments that checked in regularly but missed their initial point or a security checkpoint along a clear route. The GPS route submissions deviating from clearly designated lanes, planes landing in places where they had no clearance with override codes given for what was otherwise standard travel. She was close, of that she was certain.

The only missing link was Echo Command, the mysterious chain that always appeared in times of war. Its members were so carefully hidden from view, its orders given maximum security, but suddenly transferred to the lowest levels without clearance from the inquisition or the emperor. There was something off. "Captain Price, have you managed to locate Alexander Shepherd?"

The SAS captain shook his head. "Nothing, inquisitor. He dropped off the grid about five years ago. His last recorded flight was to the Britannian embassy in the Federation, after that he's a ghost."

Pinching the bridge of her nose, the princess sighed. Alexander Shepherd could hold the key to everything, lieutenant-general during the invasion of Area Eleven under her half-brother Uriel, a captain during the annexation of areas seven and nine, he was a competent commander and a talented strategist. Someone the Directorate needed, someone with the clearance to authorise an attack on a non-military target. "Wake up number twenty-three and have him brought to interrogation."

"Yes, inquisitor." Price bowed, walking from the room and calling for one of the doctors.

Euphemia returned to her inspection of the OSI records. Numbers didn't add up, but it was the reference to a Sword that appeared in Japan, Vladivostok, and Baghdad that worried Euphemia. She was aware of the role the Sword of Akasha played in the now defunct scheme to force world submission to Britannian rule, but control of seven of the thirteen thought elevators was impossible with the lockdown on the New York and Pendragon elevators and the withdrawal from the Vladivostok and Baghdad elevators. Unless the directorate was in Europe, which would vastly complicate things. Relations with their neighbouring superpowers were cold at best, but with the EU's current stance, they wouldn't even listen to her claims and might in fact aid the directorate if they thought it would hinder Britannia.

The interrogation room was almost stereotypical. Concrete walls, a steel table bolted to the floor and two chairs across each other with the desk in between. The light was substituted with a powerful lamp that hung from the ceiling and in the other chair was a rather unsettled OSI operative. They were not used to being on the receiving end of interrogations, and despite the supposedly air-tight security of information, rumours of torture to gather information were modern day ghost stories among the various government offices.

"Lieutenant Kyle Walker?" Euphemia announced, tossing the dossier before her onto the table, the man flinching at the sound.

"P-princess Euphemia? What am I doing here? There must be some mistake, I am a member of the emperor's armed forces, I would never betray the homeland." the man answered reflexively.

Euphemia looked at him curiously. That was almost too easy. "Save your breath, Walker. Or would it be more correct to call you agent Melanas?"

Almost instantly, the man's demeanour changed. "If you know that name, then you know who I work for. It'd be a mistake if you pushed any further."

Euphemia rose and moved a hand to her eyes. The man paled as he saw the red shine overlay her eyes. "Where is Alexander Shepherd?"

* * *

To the Readers:

Shiranai Atsune: Zero was already established as a character during Suzaku's release so technically still there.

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass and any characters from other games that I may have mentioned in passing or have similarities to other games. I am poor, please do not sue me.

A/N:

Not sure anyone expected that. Geass is a pretty versatile tool with its limitations already established. The scene with Ohgi and Inoue wasn't really planned, it was just something I felt like I had to write to explain the resistance breaking up. Put simply, without Lelouch, Ohgi was a decent leader, but he didn't have the drive to become a good leader. Kallen is an ace, not a leader, and the others have their own skills, but in the end they're just ordinary people who fought for a better life. The other reasons they disbanded will become clear once I get through another chapter or two.

Are there any outstanding plotholes I'm missing? Apart from Lelouch's time in knightmare training, I don't think I am.

Let me know what you think,

AddieBiscuit


	6. Chapter 6

Kallen Kozuki or rather Kallen Stadtfeld, as that is who she had to be at the moment, was bored. She was angry of course, that Tamaki had decided to shoot their leader who had done nothing but help their resistance group out. So angry that she considered running him over with the Sutherland they had managed to save from the incident in the ghetto. Despite herself, she found herself drawn to Zero, or Lelouch vi Britannia, who Zero truly was. To her, it didn't make sense, why a prince would become a rebel and kill his own brother. Sure it didn't bother her that the royals seemed to be killing each other, but it raised interesting questions as to his character.

She was torn between hating him for using their resistance during the battle, but at the same time she couldn't help but be intimidated with his ability to lead. Which led to her other feelings. Something between grudging respect and admiration. Not that she would ever admit it, but even she had to admit that after Cornelia's crackdown on the resistance groups that began making noise after Zero's appearance, including the appearance of several fake Zeros, Japan had begun to stabilize under Euphemia's more considerate hand.

That was another character, the metaphorical black sheep of the Imperial family. Euphemia li Britannia was someone she both hated and admired. Her position made her idealism seem like naivety, but her professionalism in dealing with both the Japanese and Britannian complaints left her admiring how someone could appease both sides. Just like how Naoto had wanted.

She wanted Naoto's dream to become a reality, had fought and trained in that rustbucket of a Glasgow so that she could help him achieve some form of cooperation between Japan and Britannia. Then he died, she reminded herself. He died and it was still Tamaki's fault, she frowned.

"Kallen? What's wrong? Not feeling well?" Shirley asked, startling Kallen from her introspection. A light dusting of red covered her cheeks at having been caught deep in thought. "Problems with your homework? At least you have an excuse, Lulu jus . . . I mean, Prince Lelouch was always just cutting class."

That's right, Kallen thought, Shirley was close to Lelouch before he returned to Britannia. "Hey, what was Prince Lelouch like?"

The perky brunette blinked at the question. "Well, he was really smart even if everyone else thought he was lazy. He'd always just know the answers even if none of us ever saw him crack open a textbook or even pay attention in class. He was, well, kind and thoughtful. He adored his sister, kept Milly from the worst of her excesses, a good friend to Rivalz, was about the only one Nina could bounce ideas off~" Shirley said, a small smile and a hint of a blush on her cheeks, only deepening when she noticed Kallen just sitting thoughtfully across her. "Oh my God, listen to me, I sound like such an idiot."

"You love him." Kallen stated.

Shirley didn't deny it, the blush on her cheeks more than enough to confirm Kallen's suspicions. "That's not, but what I meant . . . I suppose, I did. He never did talk about his family much, it irritated him whenever his family apart from Nunnally was brought up. We always assumed they had a bad relationship with their father, but how can he? He's a prince!"

"It didn't matter that Lelouch was a prince, he hated his father." Milly said from the doorway, entering the room. "He never did tell you, but he did care for you too. That time in middle school, do you remember?"

Shirley smiled. "He goaded me into challenging the swim team captain, how could I forget? How about that time he convinced that one bully to come to school in a skirt, come to think of it, I never did figure out how he did it."

Shaking her head, Kallen leaned back, listening to the two trade one insane story after another about the prince. Someone who had Milly and Shirley's confidence couldn't be all bad.

* * *

"What do you mean, we're disbanding?" Kallen asked. "Ohgi, how could you?"

The former teacher gave Kallen a puzzled expression. "You were the one who got me that interview with Ashford, and the others have their own lives to worry about." Ohgi said. "Now, what's this really about?" Ohgi asked in return. Ever since they'd chased Zero, or rather Prince Lelouch out, the newer members of their resistance had left, leaving the core of their resistance.

"You just don't want to give up on Naoto's dream, right?" Inoue asked, smiling at the girl she considered her younger sister.

Kallen nodded. "It feels like we're just giving up, disbanding like this. I knew this was coming, ever since Tamaki and some of the newer recruits went to join the Blood of the Samurai after we didn't do anything, but it's just weird knowing that everyone else is alright about this."

"It is better to be feared than to be loved, but one must be careful and not let that fear turn to hatred." Ohgi sighed. "In a way, this new Britannia, under Euphemia, is a different entity than it was under Clovis. She's . . . I can't really say genuine, but she seems to understand that she can't keep suppressing the Japanese people. Get rid of their reason for fighting, and most sane resistance groups will return to the fold."

"That still doesn't make it feel right, if she's just playing to our expectations then what happens when we're blindsided?" Kallen asked.

Ohgi shrugged. "We'll deal with tomorrow when tomorrow comes. Right now, I'm actually excited about going back to teaching. I know Yoshida is going back to his family's business in the settlement, Minami's finally gotten around to settling down now that everything is calming down and Sugiyama was finally accepted into that culinary school he wanted to go to so bad."

Nodding thoughtfully, the normally fiery redhead finally sighed. "I guess rebellions don't pay the bills."

"You aren't wrong," Inoue laughed. "Most of us still have to pull two jobs to get by, the money you and Naoto wired to us really helped keep us afloat, I don't know how some of the other cells did it."

"We all did what we could to keep Japan alive, but none of us wanted to accept that Japan, the country, was gone. We just have to keep moving forward and hope for a better future." Ohgi said solemnly. "We lost a lot of friends already, and some would say their deaths were in vain if we give up now, but I don't think they'd want us to become terrorists for their sakes."

"Naoto," Kallen agreed.

"Especially Naoto," Inoue smiled, a hand drifting to her belly.

* * *

"You are certain?" Euphemia asked, raising an eyebrow at the dossier that Lelouch had forwarded her.

The recently reinstated royal nodded. "She's headstrong, brash, and has a rather abrasive personality. Without her natural aptitude towards Knightmares, I wouldn't have even have noticed her." Lelouch shrugged. There was something about Kallen Stadtfeld that he was curious about. A Britannian noble with a sympathy for Numbers was something rare and her talent for Knightmares made her either a valuable asset or a dangerous liability, especially with the information about the Geass Directorate's operations in Japan.

"Have you uncovered any new leads about the Directorate's actions abroad?" Euphemia asked. With most of her attention dedicated towards running Area Eleven, she had asked her sibling to look into the Directorate's actions outside of mainland Britannia. With the excommunication of the Directorate and the liquidation or seizing of their various shell companies, it was inevitable that they would slip up.

Lelouch gave a feral grin. "It just so happens that a certain pharmaceutical company's closing inventory sale had a rather large purchase from an anonymous bidder. They're getting sloppier by the day, sister. We'll have their base location before too long."

Euphemia smiled. "Thank you, Lelouch. By the way, how has your . . . search gone?"

Grimacing, Lelouch shook his head. "As much as I shouldn't be surprised, a lot of the nobility's children are absolutely vapid. One or two have their wits about them, but the emperor's rather lengthy prerequisites limits the pool even further." Find a wife, he had said, it would be easy he said. Then again, after having nine wives and over fifty others that shamelessly . . . alright, he definitely did not need that image in his head.

"What about Millicent? I know she was your confidant while you were here." Euphemia offered, noting the stunned look on Lelouch's face with no small amount of amusement. "Haven't you heard? The press has been all over her since you made a deal with Reuben, or is that Earl Ashford?"

"Can't ever hide anything from you, can I?" Lelouch sighed.

"Definitely not, we've had a few conversations since I was posted here, and I have to say I like her. You could do a lot worse." Euphemia noted.

Lelouch put on a rather amusing expression. "Nunnally still needs my help with some of the renovation work, I'll talk to you soon."

"Oh brother," Euphemia chuckled, before schooling her face into the mask of the inquisitor. "Monica, please send an invitation for Lady Kallen Stadtfeld for tea."

* * *

To the Readers: 

A Fan (Anonymous): I was really, really tempted to write "just another time-travel fic" to be totally honest. Thank you for your criticism, and I'll try to work the segments closer together. That's just the problem to be totally honest, I have ideas multiplying in my head by the second and my brain just kinda throws everything together.

Zero0Q1: Wish granted, I'm still debating on how I'm going to have her character develop.

Everyone who's asking about KallenxLelouch: Uhh, I really have no idea who I'm pairing as of yet. The character tags aren't even final, just whoever suddenly gets a spotlight in chapters, I'll have a more final idea . . . soon.

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass or any other copyrighted materials referenced in this fiction. I am poor and don't write for profit, please don't sue me.

A/N:

FREAKING FINALLY.

I am so sorry everyone for such a long delay, but my sisters have discovered the wonders of KPOP and KDrama and have been downloading a lot of their series. One issue. They use my computer. Long story short. Viruses, panic, much tears over the fact I had to hard reformat my computer. It's fixed, but now a lot of my story notes are up in flames. Now shifting to keeping these notes electronic and online and stuff.

Anyway, sorry for the short chapter. Things are getting a bit exciting since they're renovating the house and I don't have a quiet moment to myself anymore. Gah. Here's the next chapter, can't be sure when the next chapter is coming because I'm still trying to piece my notes together from scraps and my hyperactive imagination.

Until next time,

AddieBiscuit


	7. Chapter 7

Lelouch disconnected from his conversation with Euphemia with a sigh. Briefly, he wondered where his carefree, innocent sister went. Despite her bubbly nature, Lelouch could see behind the mask at the remarkably focused and determined individual that had grown from his pink-haired half-sister. "Sancia, please cancel my appointments for today." Lelouch said into the intercom, not quite waiting for the reply before glancing down at the clock.

Was it right for him to do this? She had suffered enough at the hands of nobles, had endured so much ridicule and censorship from their 'peers' following her family's fall from grace. It was because of his family that she was in the situation she was now, but could he ask her to step back into the nest of vipers? She had said that she would do it, and if there was anyone he could trust with his secrets, it was her.

As if on cue, the private terminal rang and Lelouch answered, the face of Milly Ashford replacing the connection screen after a few seconds. "Milly, thanks for calling."

The curvy blonde gave her best friend her trademark smirk. "After you dealt with my 'parents', I definitely owe you one." Milly replied easily. How Lelouch had dug up that much blackmail material on her parents' activities Milly didn't know, but it definitely beat her original plan of ruining the wedding and facing social suicide.

Lelouch returned the blonde's smirk with his own, "Happy to be of service, Miss Ashford." Lelouch chuckled.

Frowning, Milly scrutinized Lelouch. He never tread around a subject, and his last note to her said it was important. "Forgive my language, your highness," Milly cut in, making Lelouch blink in surprise. "But cut the crap, you never ask for help. You're too proud to admit you need help, even when you do need it. You've only ever asked for my help once, when~"

"When we showed up at your doorstep during the war, Nunnally was shot, and I was about to lose her. I know." Lelouch said, his voice dangerously low, that even Milly had to reassess the situation and determined that needling the prince was not in her best interest if she wanted to keep breathing and stay out of jail. "I need your help, Milly. Please."

Shaking her head, Milly frowned. That was not a tone she was familiar hearing, especially from Lelouch. Despite his newfound power, she knew just how tenuous his position was within the royal court. A commoner-born prince, exiled from his homeland, mysteriously vanishing for years and only turning up in a seedy corner of Area Eleven's ghettos with terrorists chasing him. Terrorists who seemed to know exactly who he was.

It frightened Milly, though she would never admit it. Frightened her just how close her best friend had been to death. Frightened her because she was aware of the parallels between Lelouch's history and her own family's recent history. The Ashford family was mud to many of the bigger companies, and Reuben's connections with the Sakuradite and technological sectors were the only things keeping the family afloat. With her parents still attempting to carve a name for themselves at the bottom of the noble hierarchy, it fell to Milly to ensure the family lasted beyond her generation. A rather old-fashioned notion, but even Milly felt some pride in being an Ashford, one of the oldest families to serve Britannia since the exodus.

"You wouldn't ask if it wasn't important," Milly conceded. "What do you need?"

* * *

Schneizel sat across Lelouch, a white knight in his hand as he made his next move. "Lelouch, what is your plan from here?" The prime minister asked, observing his younger half-brother with a careful look.

"What do you mean? Giving my strategy to win this match is hardly fair, brother." Lelouch replied with confidence he didn't quite feel. This match was too easy. "I don't know what you're getting at Schneizel, but letting me win isn't in your character." Lelouch sighed, nudging a bishop forward to take advantage of the gap the now missing knight exposed in his king's defense. "Checkmate."

"Let you win?" Schneizel asked with feigned ignorance. "You're just getting better, Lelouch."

Glaring at his brother, Lelouch snarled. "Don't patronize me, brother. Why did you call me at this hour?"

Eyes hardening, Schneizel stood and threw down several folders. "While I appreciate our father's newfound conscience, it's tearing this empire apart. His expansionist agenda let the country run on a wartime economy for the past few decades and let us expand and piggyback off his conquests and resources. With that coming to a halt, we're losing support of the nobility who have no new territory to claim and no new positions to advance their own agendas."

"And you're blaming me for this?" Lelouch asked incredulously. He had never taken his brother for a fool, and connecting Lelouch's return to the current state of the empire was asinine at best. "I'm sorry, Schneizel, but you seem to be laboring under the misconception that I have something to do with this."

Shaking his head, the second eldest son of the emperor of Britannia turned his back on Lelouch and faced the window. "That's not it. We're losing support, and without a new source of income under our direct control, it will take years for Britannia to recover to switching back to a peacetime economy." Schneizel looked somewhat unsettled by that admittance. "As his children, we're valuable political tools, and when we need to consider the empire's survival."

"No. You are not forcing that onto me." Lelouch spoke quickly.

Schneizel sighed. "I had hoped you'd listen to me, brother. Some of our other siblings took the news poorly as well. No, I'm not going to have you killed, Sir Gottwald, please put your gun away."

The knight in question reluctantly holstered his revolver at Lelouch's nod. Schneizel wouldn't kill him, not while Lelouch was still useful. "Nobody will touch me, I'm the pauper prince, remember?"

"But a prince nevertheless" Schneizel said. "We need to assure the loyalty of the nobility, and one way or another, we've secured the loyalty of a good portion of the conservative faction. If you won't do it, then Nunnally is at the age that she's ready to betrothed and make her debut."

* * *

"I know I've said it before, Lelouch, but your family are complete assholes." Milly said, feeling sick to her stomach at the knowledge that Schneizel threatened to sell Nunnally off like a piece of meat. "No offense to the nice ones."

"None taken," Lelouch raised an eyebrow. "So you see my dilemma. They know Nunnally's alive, they know where we've hidden, and they'll come for you again if we disappear. We're important, and that's enough to get the target off our backs." Lelouch wrung his hands together before burying his head in his hands. "I'm out of options, I have no more cards to play that will work on Schneizel."

Milly frowned. She'd just had her freedom guaranteed with her parents' arrest, and now not only would she be in danger, she'd be in the snake pit. She knew that Lelouch helped keep the Ashford family afloat with money from his gambling ever since he turned fifteen. Maybe, it was time to repay the favor. "Then you know what you have to do." Milly said quietly.

"Milly, I couldn't ask you. I thought, maybe you knew someone or a few someones, or you had a connection with the nobles left that you didn't tell me." Lelouch said.

"The Ashfords may not be nobility, but we are well-connected." Milly smirked, knowing full well that those stocks and shares came from Lelouch and Reuben's planning for years to keep the Ashfords from poverty and to keep the university and academy operational. "If there was someone you could trust, wouldn't it be me?"

Lelouch looked guilty, he was bringing his best and closest friend besides Suzaku into the crossfire of his family's politics. He couldn't do it, and yet. "You're taking a rather big risk accepting this."

Hiding her nervousness with another smirk, Milly shrugged. "It's not completely out of the goodness of my heart, having its heiress a princess-consort would increase the standing that the Ashford family needs to bring itself back into the peerage. As a prince, you can sponsor our return and kick those bootlickers out of Ashford county."

"Do we have a deal then, Camellia Ashford?" Lelouch asked.

"Don't push your luck, vi Britannia. You still haven't asked me." Milly scoffed, though she blushed at Lelouch's surprised expression.

"Milly Ashford, will you do me the honor of being my wife?"

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass or any other copyrighted material that may be referenced or stated in this work of complete fiction. I am poor and do not write for profit, please do not sue me.

A/N:

Hey everyone,

Sorry for such a long update. Everything is getting really, really stressful back at home. Forgive my language, but my bitch of a mother thinks that after being absent from our lives for the better part of twelve years she can suddenly waltz back in and demand custody. I don't know how exactly it works, I'm fifteen, so don't go filling up the reviews section with legal-speak, dad's handling everything. To make things better, it turns out my dad isn't actually my dad and mother dearest got frisky with her best friend and I happened. If you think I'm taking this well, I'm not, but my sisters are keeping me relatively sane. I'm still an absolute wreck right now and I was advised to vent before I got too violent and did something drastic, but plausible deniability and all that.

Not sure when the next chapter's coming out, I have an idea of what I want to do with the story, but gotta take care of this mess first.


	8. Chapter 8

Euphemia did not really know what to expect when Lelouch mentioned an 'informally-trained ace pilot with the personality of Cornelia without her morning cup of coffee'. As a general rule, she always reserved judgement on an individual until she personally met them, but with the young woman readily accepting her invitation to a meeting with neither of them supposedly having anything in common, there was something off about the whole situation.

Four soldiers in the colors of the li Britannia household guard kept watch from beside the doors and behind and beside the princess. Despite having a large, open window to her back, it would require anti-tank grade weaponry to pierce the reinforced glass. She hoped that it was only her deceased brother's paranoia that led him to take such extreme measures in a post-war Area.

Reading up more on the dossier provided to her by Monica, she was surprised to learn that she wasn't in fact the child of the current Lady Stadtfeld, but rather their maid. Which explained both why she was hiding in plain sight and still maintained support and active involvement in a small resistance movement, not that she told Monica about the young woman's budding career as a freedom fighter. The buzzer that informed her of her guest's arrival sounded, and Euphemia swung her chair around, observing the young woman as she entered with Monica at her side.

Despite being nobility, she lacked the characteristic grace that was trained into the heirs and heiresses in their youth and early teens. Her facial expression was schooled into something between demure and obedience while her eyes flicked from Euphemia to her hands to the desk and to the guards behind her, assessing. "Heiress Stadtfeld, welcome." Euphemia smiled warmly, extending a hand to indicate the young woman take a seat at the couch placed before her desk."

At least she could still play the part of obedient, sheltered heiress, Euphemia observed as Kallen took a seat, her eyes never stopping in their roaming. Ordinarily, anyone who hadn't met royalty would either stare directly at the royal in question, or would avoid eye contact in nervousness or embarrassment. She observed the slight tensing of the young woman's muscles as Euphemia oriented herself in a somewhat threatening manner. "Y-your highness, it's an honor to meet you." Kallen said with a bob of her head.

"Delighted to meet you, but you may simply call me Euphie or Euphemia if referring to me too casually makes you uncomfortable." Euphemia said, her smile yet to leave her face. "It's the least I can do, after you made such an impression on Lelouch."

There. Her shoulders tightened, and the girl herself froze as if a deer in the headlights as Euphemia observed her reactions. "I-I'm afraid I don't quite understand, your highness. I haven't had the honor to speak with Prince Lelouch even while we were classmates in Ashford."

Euphemia continued to smile. "Really? I had heard that both he and yourself were on the student council in Ashford Academy, Lelouch mentioned you were the secretary."

The tension drained somewhat from Kallen's frame, perhaps thinking she had overreacted to Euphemia's earlier statement. "Oh, yes," she said hastily. "He was the vice president, tried to keep Milly from doing anything too extravagant."

"Milly? Camellia Ashford? I somehow doubt that anyone can curb that woman's impulses when she puts her mind to it."

* * *

'Really Milly,' Kallen sighed inwardly, but at least the worst had passed. She thought that after Lelouch had been shot at and chased out from a group he helped found, he'd carry a grudge against her at the very least, but it seemed this wasn't quite the case. For all her reputation had her as a no-nonsense, hyper-efficient administrator, there was still something of a regular young woman there somewhere. "That's true, your highness. The prince always did seem to have some sway over her decisions."

The princess smiled wistfully. "She always did get along with Lelouch and Nunnally before they left for Japan."

No. There was no way that the princess had just said 'Japan'. As far as Britannia was concerned, Japan died with its last prime minister over a decade ago. Kallen figured that it was a slip, remembering happier days did sometimes have that effect on Kallen, it had gotten her in trouble a few times as well. "Milly knew the prince and princess even before?"

Euphemia nodded. "Yes. We often met in Pendragon whenever Lord Ashford, was meeting with someone in the capital. Camellia and I fought over a lot of things, they all seem so trivial now." The princess looked at Kallen, and despite herself, Kallen felt nervous under the princess's scrutinizing gaze. "Like how we both felt some . . . disdain, for lack of a stronger term, for our parents. We can't choose our parents, after all." Euphemia said cryptically.

"I'm afraid I don't quite understand, princess." Kallen said. "I do apologize, but I think I've overstayed my visit, you must be very busy." She had to leave, there was something not quite right about the pretty pink princess.

Euphemia's entire demeanor changed in that instant, her eyes hardening. "I don't believe I dismissed you yet, Kozuki-san." Euphemia said in practiced Japanese that made Kallen freeze from where she had her back to the princess. "I'm not stupid, did you really think I ask just about anyone who knew my half-brother in passing? Do you see any of your friends here? Did any of them tell you that they'd been summoned by the viceroy as well?"

Kallen's heart dropped into her stomach. "You know, he told you." Kallen whispered, all thoughts of escaping passing. She was so screwed.

"Of course he did, but nothing too damning. Your friends in your resistance, however. Oh, don't act too surprised, just because we can't arrest every terrorist and freedom fighter in the ghettos doesn't mean we don't know who any of them are." Euphemia said casually, and Kallen felt angry at the amusement she saw glittering in the princess's eyes. She was just toying with her.

"If you're going to kill me, then just get it over with," she snarled back in Japanese, ignoring the two guards who leveled their weapons at her. She was beyond caring at this point, Britannian arrogance, having the upper hand and still wanting to toy with their prey before the end. "I'm not going to tell you anything."

"Believe me, Kozuki, stronger men than yourself have said that. Spies, diplomats, assassins, all have thus far disappointed. That isn't my purpose, however." Euphemia sighed, and Kallen found herself more puzzled than angry at this woman. "How much do you know about the inquisition?"

"About as much as everyone else," Kallen answered truthfully. There wasn't anyone alive who didn't know about the enforcers of Britannia's will, and speculation among the rebel groups regarding these individuals was wild and covered in exaggerations if anything. "They work outside the law, bringing their own brand of judgement and order on those they think beneath them."

The princess hummed thoughtfully. "What would you say to working for an inquisitor? Hypothetically speaking of course, that said inquisitor discovered the real reason Britannia invaded Japan. That said inquisitor is on the hunt for those responsible and that said inquisitor was willing to pardon the allies of a certain ace pilot if that ace pilot were to render service to the crown."

"The real reason?" Kallen asked. "What more reason than Sakuradite would Britannia need to invade anyone? For that matter, when did Britannia ever need a reason to invade anyone?"

"Something beyond either you or I, but again, all hypothetical. What I can give you is a chance to fight back against the real powers behind Japan's invasion and the corruption eating away at the empire. I don't figure you for a optimist, but I'm certain you understand the value of being an agent of the crown." Euphemia said. "I'll contact you at a later date. For your own sake, don't speak of this to anyone." Euphemia said, waving for her guards to escort Kallen from the room.

* * *

Looking around the room she lived in since she arrived in Japan, Milly was anxious. Then again, why wouldn't she? Eight weeks ago, her best friend was in the hospital with gunshot wounds and his family discovered that he was alive. Five weeks ago, she watched as he was paraded around on live television with his usual stoic mask that hid his true rage and grief from the world, three weeks ago, he saved her from being forced into an arranged marriage with some noble, a week ago, he asked her for her hand. Today, she would fulfill her end of the bargain with Lelouch.

Wandering Ashford, she couldn't help but feel nostalgia at all the memories she had made within the school her grandfather had built form nothing. It wasn't as if her betrothal was a secret, many children of noble families had made it abundantly clear that they thought she was in over her head. The remainder of the student population was divided in their opinion. On one hand, they were happy for her, as happy as someone could be with being made to marry not even out of high school. The other with jealousy at her supposedly lucky break and being able to marry such a famous individual.

It isn't their fault, Milly told herself, the royal family was always portrayed as perfect and exclusive. Supposedly, to be accepted into it was a great honor. Those who knew members of royalty knew the stress placed upon them by their status. That their position remained at the will of their father and master, that they served at his pleasure and lived by his whim.

So deep in her own thoughts was she that she barely noticed the student council throwing a surprise party until Rivalz called her. Blinking, she gave him a smile. "Rivalz, Shirley, everyone. Thank you."

If there was one regret that Milly had when she accepted Lelouch, it was that Shirley was caught in the crossfire. She knew the girl had strong feelings for Lelouch, and even when she'd broached the topic with Lelouch, he knew that she was unsuitable for life at court. Genuinely kind and emotional, she was too honest for the den of vipers that called Pendragon home.

The brunette in question ran over to hug Milly, though it was painfully obvious to the blonde that the former had been crying. "Milly, I'm so happy for you." Shirley said.

Even if it hurt her, Milly thought sadly, she would push her own emotions away so she wouldn't hurt other people. It's just the kind of person Shirley was. "Shirley," Milly said. "You, that means a lot coming from you." Milly said. "I'd never do anything to hurt you intentionally, you know that, right?"

Shirley smiled at Milly, and Milly wholeheartedly wished that her smile was genuine. "I'm a little jealous, but you'll keep an eye on him, won't you? There's nobody on this planet that can stop Lelouch when he puts his mind to something."

Shaking her head, Milly returned the embrace "Isn't that the truth."

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass or any other copyrighted material that may be referenced or stated in this work of complete fiction. I am poor and do not write for profit, please do not sue me.

To the Readers:

Everyone who still insists on KallenXLelouch: Listen, I am currently beyond caring that you think they go together, they don't know each other well enough in this timeline/AU for them to know anything about each other apart from "Hey, maybe this prince isn't all bad, but he did play with us like we were chess pieces" and "Hey, she didn't shoot me and is a great pilot with a double life, but can I really trust her?" so quit it. If you don't like the fic, there are literally thousands of other fics that cater to your shipping needs.

The few who think it should be ShirleyXLelouch: This one is my own personal ship, but the story doesn't fit them quite well enough. Maybe in the future or in another story, I mean, I've planned this story maybe five or so chapters in advance then it's all out there for where I take the story. Don't get me wrong, I have an ending in mind, just not sure how I'm getting there.

Lord Halcyon: Thank you so much for your kind words, it really means a lot to me, with everything that's going on. Hope I don't disappoint.

TheTrueOverlordBear: I'll admit, I like action as much as the next . . . well, action fan. The premise of the story just doesn't fit too many action scenes, that and I'm not quite sure how I'd write a knightmare battle or even a duel or something like that, it's just a lot of work for what's likely little overall impact on the story. Lelouch commanding a battle on the other hand, or the thoughts of someone on the field or in a cockpit, now that I can get behind.

A/N:

Hello everyone, and you can thank the amazingly early release for this chapter for my undying hatred towards those that were necessary for my conception. If that's still unclear, I'm basically made to switch between the two as an agreement on both my dad's part and those two so I could find out who I . . . wanted to stay with or something asinine like that. Needless to say, I was not amused in the slightest and while shutting myself in the room I've been assigned to for a fair few hours may be childish, it meant I could at least work undisturbed instead of pretending to enjoy their company. That being said, who knows, I might get a few more chapters done in a short span of time, or maybe it'll take another eternity as with the previous chapter.

On to the story, the main reason I chose Milly as opposed to Shirley or Kallen was pretty simple. Shirley was simply too kind and perhaps too trusting/truthful for Pendragon, that Lelouch would bring her anywhere near the rest of his immediate and extended family is out of the question. He doesn't know Kallen well enough for her to even be an option in this case, which is why he gave Euphie the information on her, to maybe make use of. Milly is nobility or maybe formerly, despite her flippant attitude, she knows how to act the part and would have grown up learning the intricacies of court.

Let me know what you all think and I'll catch you all in the next installment,

Addiebiscuit


	9. Chapter 9

Nunnally sat in a shaded corner of Aries Villa, with Lucretia and Alice at her side. The painfully quiet young woman who seemed to be maybe two or three years her senior, and yet Nunnally could see the pain in her companion's movements. There was a dreadful sense of resignation in her actions, seemingly lethargic or else somewhat clumsy. Originally, Nunnaly thought it was just one of the girl's many quirks, that she was naturally a rather tired person. Now, Nunnally had seen enough of the young woman that her curiosity outweighed her tact. "Lucretia, tell me about yourself." Nunnally said abruptly, switching her focus from her book to Lucretia.

Blinking in surprise, the pale blonde looked confusedly towards Alice who shrugged noncommittally and returned to her tablet. "Umm, what exactly do you want to know about me? You've read my personal dossier from Lady Edefeldt." Lucretia said quietly. "I'm afraid I'm not very interesting, your highness."

This drew a frown from Nunnally, one Lucretia was quick to apologize for in her quiet voice. "I did, but it seems so impersonal, I'd like to hear it from you. You know, I did tell you to call me Nunnally, Lucretia. Do I really need to make it a command or something before you stop referring to me as 'princess' or 'your highness'."

"Sorry, your highness. I mean, Nunnally." Lucretia quickly amended after hearing Nunnally's sigh. "Where do you want me to begin?"

"What do you do for fun? Looking after me must be so terribly boring." Nunnally asked.

Lucretia looked offended at the thought of finding Nunnally boring, but shook her head. "Of course not, your highness. I mean, Nunnally. Fun?" Lucretia mused, looking quite thoughtful while Alice gave her own unladylike snort.

"She wouldn't know how to have fun if her life depended on it," Alice offered, drawing a scowl from Lucretia.

"You wouldn't have gotten this job if it weren't for me," Lucretia replied. "Tactless, graceless, and so utterly plain." Lucretia sneered, nodding towards the strawberry blonde's chest, or rather lack thereof. "Four years, and you still look like a child."

Alice's own expression twisted into something between anger and embarrassment. "How exactly is that my fault, you stupid bint!"

Nunnally looked worriedly between her two attendants as they began bickering between themselves about every topic under the sun and was definitely worried they would come to blows. That was, at least, until the doors to the library swung open and an absolutely livid Sancia stalked into the room, dropping a tablet onto the table and swiftly approached the two, simultaneously twisting an ear from each of the offenders.

"Dalque," Sancia said, her tone betraying nothing of her frustration. "Please, escort the princess to her room while I deal with these two."

Quickly, the dark-skinned girl assisted Nunnally with strength belaying her size and escorted Nunnally from the room. Nunnally glanced back as Dalque shut the doors promptly behind her and wheeled Nunnally off. "Are they going to be alright?" Nunnally asked worriedly.

Dalque shrugged. "Can't say, I've never seen Lady Edefeldt quite so mad before."

* * *

The moment the doors were shut and a few seconds had passed, Sancia let out a low breath. "So," she breathed. "Would one of you imbeciles like to tell me what just happened?"

The momentary lapse in their judgement at least shone in the embarrassment at the situation. "Sister, I'm sorry. I~" Alice began, before Sancia threw the girl to the ground, maintaining her grip on Lucretia as a heeled foot trapped Alice's neck. Hands grasping at her throat, Alice's eyes bugged as Sancia observed her with casual indifference, like one might an ant on the ground. Meanwhile, her grip had changed to lift Lucretia bodily by her throat.

"Listen, both of you. You might be used to sloppy jobs in your previous assignments, but I will not tolerate any further outbursts from either of you. If either of you so much as breathe wrong, you will be returning to father in a body bag. Am. I. Clear." Sancia said, glaring at Lucretia.

"T-transparently," Lucretia choked out with Alice nodding soundlessly as she continued to be deprived of air.

"Good," Sancia said, sending a hard kick into Alice's side as she released then struck Lucretia, similarly sending her to the floor. "Get yourselves cleaned up, you will both be escorting the princess to the Au Britannia household for dinner. I will be watching."

Without another word, Sancia turned on her heel and departed, storming off and leaving the two girls on the ground gasping for breath.

Lucretia was the first to her feet, scrambling over to where Alice lay sprawled. "Alice! Hey, wake up!" Lucretia shouted, shaking Alice. "Hey, you idiot, wake up!"

Coughing, the strawberry-blonde weakly batted Lucretia's hands away. "Heavy, can't breathe." Alice panted, greedily gulping in air as Lucretia sat back. "I hate her." Alice said eventually, wiping the blood from her mouth on the back of her hand.

Shrugging, Lucretia held out a hand for Alice, who accepted and pulled herself up. "No arguments there," Lucretia admitted. "I'm scared," she added, earning an incredulous look from Alice. In truth, Lucretia had been having doubts about this assignment. It would be so much easier to simply get rid of the returned prince, but by now they were known faces in the household, which would make removing them difficult when their mission finally ended.

Alice observed her companion, before hugging her. "I'm sorry," Alice whispered. "I shouldn't have said what I did."

Lucretia blinked at the show of affection from the normally stoic girl but returned the hug fiercely. "I know, and I'm sorry too. You're my best friend, and I can't lose you."

The two remained for a long moment while they silently enjoyed the other's presence. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything," came a voice from the door.

Jumping apart, the two were red-faced as the prince walked in. "Don't stop on my account, I'm just here to get away from my fiancee." Lelouch remarked, his eyes narrowed as he caught sight of the bruises beginning to form on both Alice and Lucretia's throats. "Either the two of you have very similar kinks, or are the reason Sancia stormed off earlier."

The two girls blushed further. "Yes milord, I apologize if we caused you any inconvenience." Lucretia said, bowing her head.

Lelouch remained impassive, looking at the two for a moment. Lucretia felt oddly vulnerable before the prince, despite Alice's ability and her own training. There was something about the prince that terrified her, like a storm brewing behind his cold violet eyes. "My prince, is something the matter?" Alice asked, stirring Lelouch from his thoughts.

"Nothing. Nothing at all. Be prepared for the dinner at the Au Britannia residence and wear something to cover those bruises." Lelouch said, turning on his heel and departing from the room.

* * *

Lelouch was brooding, nursing a tall glass of wine. Had he missed the signs? Was Sancia going around and 'disciplining' people who didn't meet her exacting standards? There was protocol for that sort of thing, one didn't simply hit a girl for arguing with her counterpart. Was it because Nunnally was in the room?` "Lelouch, you look like you just lost a game of chess, what's wrong?" Milly asked, taking a seat beside Lelouch and plucking the glass from his hands. Before he could protest, the blonde tipped back the wine. "You're still underage, and you definitely don't drink. Spill it."

"Sancia, the woman who runs the household." Lelouch said quietly. "I think she's abusing Nunnally's attendants, but I don't know if it happens to anyone else."

Milly scowled at the mention of the woman. The first thing that woman had tried to do was turn her back from the gates, informing her that the prince wasn't receiving visitors. It seemed that there was a fair bit the woman controlled that Lelouch didn't know about. "That might not be all she's doing. I did tell you that the guards tried to turn me back when I entered. It slipped my mind, but one of the guards mentioned that it was under her orders, though it might have been passed down from you."

"She knew you were coming today, she should have notified the guards to let you pass." Lelouch remarked thoughtfully. "Thanks for letting me know Milly. Why don't you check on Nunnally?"

Milly raised an eyebrow. "Trying to get rid of me so soon, vi Britannia?" Milly smirked. "Why, it's almost like you're trying to hide something." Seeing Lelouch's pointed look, Milly shrugged, giving Lelouch a peck on his forehead. "Alright, alright. Try not to be too late, June and Flora are some of the few siblings of yours that I actually like."

"Yes dear," Lelouch replied, earning a laugh from Milly as she went to look for Nunnally.

Turning back to the monitor, Lelouch shook his head when he saw Euphie's caller ID appear. "Speak of the devil, hello Euphie, I was just about to call you."

"Lelouch, when I said you should court Lady Ashford, I didn't mean propose to her right off the bat." The pretty pink princess gave her half-brother a wide smile. "Oh, I'm so happy for you, dear brother." Euphie squealed in joy, and Lelouch saw her knight in the background struggling to not laugh at the princess's antics. "I need to call Cassius and tell him he owes me dinner at that restaurant of his."

"Yes, yes Euphie. What was it you needed?" Lelouch shook his head at her outburst of emotion. It had been too long since he'd seen a hint of the old Euphie from the mask of Euphemia.

Composing herself, the princess smiled. "We've found Shepherd. My team should be extracting him from the Federation in a few days."

"Truly? That easy?" Lelouch asked, smiling as his sister winked. "Only you, Euphie. How did your meeting the other day go? Is Red interesting enough for you?"

"Red is . . . an interesting character." Euphemia admitted. "I have a few doubts, are you sure we can trust them?"

"Trust? No, you don't trust anyone that much, sister." Lelouch said. "But Red is a useful asset. On that note, I need your clearance for a little extracurricular work."

Euphemia's eyes narrowed for a moment, but eventually she relented. "You know who to call, I'll let them know you're asking. Just, be careful brother. Don't bite off more than you can chew. They aren't to be underestimated like your normal chess opponents."

"Oh ye of little faith," Lelouch remarked as Euphemia cut the connection.

* * *

A/N:

Life kinda sucks, but c'est la vie. As far as things are going, I only need to deal with those people twice a week, and there's no way in hell I'll ever decide to stay with them, because as far as I'm concerned, they have no place in my life. Unfortunately, brewing one's own alcohol and attempting to sell it isn't a criminal offense even if it smells like piss and neither is owning poppers, I checked, otherwise I'd get dad to throw the book at those two. Here's the latest chapter courtesy of avoiding my biological parents' friends. Amazing what utter boredom and five hours of free time alone will do for your muse, eh?

I'll see you all next update. Stuff's getting moved forward both in real life and in the story, so here's hoping for good news.

As always, I enjoy reading reviews that criticize my writing, your general reactions or speculate what's happening, so go do that. A follow and a favorite helps to bolster that self-confidence too.

AddieBiscuit


	10. Chapter 10

Euphemia regarded the emerald-haired woman for several seconds. For one thing, she was sitting in the middle of the viceroy's palace. For another, she hadn't seen this woman in over six years. Raising an eyebrow, Euphemia glanced over to where the two soldiers were huddled, rocking themselves and clutching their knees to their chests. "Director, I'd appreciate it if you didn't constantly incapacitate my soldiers with your code." Euphemia said dryly, nodding to Monica.

The knight raised the fringe that covered her left eye, revealing an ornate mask that she had worn ever since she challenged the Duke of York to a duel for something or other while she was still a candidate for the knights of the round. The lens opened, revealing the soft blue glow of the geass cancelling device housed within. Placing a hand to the soldiers' temples, she allowed the canceller to protect their minds from the influence of C's World that the green haired woman had allowed to pour through and overload their senses.

"Apologies," she said, rather unconvincingly. "They attempted to impede my progress towards you, or have you forgotten the terms of our agreement?"

Euphemia gestured for Monica to remove the two currently disoriented guards before they fully recovered and noticed CC's presence. "No, I haven't. You were the one who went and disappeared for eight years. How did you even get into the palace?" Euphemia asked, genuinely concerned with how the woman had evaded detection. "You didn't . . . incapacitate anyone else, did you?"

"You wound me, I would never knowingly do anything to bring attention to myself." CC replied easily.

Euphemia felt a surge of annoyance towards the lime-haired woman, who wore a small smirk that irritated her. "Director, need I remind you that you're still being hunted by the directorate. If you blatantly disregard protocol when it comes to these sorts of things, I won't be able to protect you." Euphemia sighed, rubbing a hand against her temple. It amazed her at how flippant the six century old immortal could be if she was feeling particularly bored or snubbed.

CC sniffed, "your oaf of a brother decided it was a good idea to dissect me and learn the "secrets of immortality" as he put it." CC had used hand gestures to illustrate the point and Euphemia couldn't help but shake her head and say a little prayer to her departed half-sibling.

"I take it you were the one who pulled the trigger then?" Euphemia asked. Sure, she liked Clovis, but he had changed into something of a complete idiot to be totally honest. He was a good actor, that she wouldn't deny, but he lacked the actual skill to run such an important area. A decade, and Japan was nowhere near satellite area or even colony status.

Euphemia was rather surprised then at CC's shrug. "It was not I who pulled the trigger on that narcissist, though I rather wish it was. Did you not hear of Zero and his exploits?"

Letting out a long breath, Euphemia nodded. Zero. After she'd arrived in Area Eleven to investigate into the death of Clovis, there hadn't been a trace of the rebel figure since the so-called Kururugi Incident. She still wasn't sure what Orange was, but if Lelouch saw fit to trust Gottwald, then it likely wasn't anything too important. His family did own a rather large plantation in the south, and it did hold a rather large orchard of the citrus fruits. She was getting side-tracked. "You know who Zero is, then." Euphemia stated, appraising the immortal.

Shrugging noncommittally, she stretched languidly on the couch that sat to the side of her office. "Perhaps, perhaps not. I was rescued from that idiot's clutches, I do owe him a debt."

"Did you give Zero geass?" Euphemia asked.

CC gave Euphemia a cheshire grin, one that made the inquisitor's heart sink into her stomach. "It was well within my rights to protect my investment and bestow upon Zero the king's gift."

"Spectacular." Euphemia groaned. Her job had just gotten far more complicated. An alert on the corner of her eye caught her attention, and she smiled.

* * *

Price ducked under a hail of fire, the blood thundering in his ears. Shepherd had betrayed them. His arm, useless. His mission, a failure. His friends, dead. Price swore, ducking into another service corridor, reloading his pistol after emptying the clip into the visor of one of the pursuing black armored soldiers. Had Shepherd sent a regular unit, Price might have thought twice about killing them. On the other hand the men, if they could even be called that, that made up the general's attack dogs were fair game.

Turning a corner, Price holstered his pistol and tossed his last grenade down the corner. Grabbing onto the harness, he launched himself from the settlement's megastructure and into the twisted structures of the ghettos. Price continued his flight, rolling to dissipate the shock of the landing. It was getting harder to think with all the blood he'd lost. Stumbling into an alley, Price grit his teeth and forced himself forward, his legs giving way as the crumbled streets gave way to the old underground. Darkness rushed to meet Price as he fell face first into the abandoned tunnels.

Waking with a start, Price looked around, his mechanical arm whirring quietly in its socket. If he had anything to say about it, the dreams wouldn't be troubling him for long after today. "Old man, you alright?" one of the younger operatives asked.

"Not that old, kid. I'm fine, just the arm acting up." Price dismissed, listening to the dull hum of the stealth craft's engine.

The intercom crackled for a moment, before their pilot's voice came through. "Rise and shine, ladies and gentlemen. We're thirty minutes out."

Price checked the magazine of his pistol, noting the single shot that was left in the chamber. The ghosts of his friends would be silent by the next night, one way or the other.

* * *

VV was furious. He had covered his tracks, he was perfect, there was no way he had made a mistake. It must be one of his scientists, one of those rats had left a trail that led to Shepherd. If that idiot hadn't gave away their plans during Japan's conquest, they would have been in a much better position, but he was still too important to just let him die.

He was running out of options, derailing the investigation didn't work when that nosy pink-haired harlot began sticking her obnoxiously large nose into his business. Inquisitorial clearance, something the directorate had been trying to prevent had been the power that had unlocked so many doors that VV hadn't considered. "I cannot lose to those imbeciles."

Shepherd had to be moved, or the investigation had to be halted. Or the team had to leave. None seemed particularly good ideas, not after his brother betrayed him.

"How dare he," VV muttered darkly. "I give him everything and he has the nerve to betray me. It's that bitch's spawn. It's always her, even dead she continues to be a nuisance. That will end soon, as soon as they're dead, Charles will want me back."

Perhaps, had the immortal been thinking clearly, he would have noticed several flaws in his strategy. He contacted Sancia, doubtless she was already in position to take care of those brats. "Of course, father. As you command."

* * *

"Thank you for hosting us tonight, Empress Anastasia." Lelouch bowed, while Milly dipped into a shallow curtsy. Nunnally inclined her head in her own gratitude.

The empress gave a warm smile. "Not a problem Lelouch, you and yours will always be welcome here." She nodded to both Milly and Nunnally. "I will see my daughters to bed, safe travels home."

Nunnally waved at the twins, who returned them with their own grins as the empress shepherded them back into the manor. "It was nice to see the twins again, I haven't seen them in years." Nunnally confessed, her brother lowering the ramp to allow the wheelchair to enter the back of the limousine unhindered. "It's like things were back to before the war for a moment."

"If only it could really have been," Lelouch began until Milly cut him off with a finger to his lips.

She smiled at Nunnally. "Your brother really isn't much of a people person, is he?" she asked rhetorically, amusement spreading to her eyes as Lelouch looked rather indignant.

Nunnally laughed, a sound that surprised even her. "That he isn't, but at least he has you."

"Betrayed by my own blood," Lelouch rolled his eyes and sighed in mock exasperation. "Aren't you supposed to be taking my side?"

Milly leaned over to hug Nunnally. "Normally, but between the two of you, Nunnally is far cuter than you are."

"I really enjoyed tonight, we should meet with Euphie and Nelly soon." Nunnally said. "I haven't had the chance to see either of them since we returned to Britannia."

On the way to her room, Nunnally reflected on the day's events. Alice was uncharacteristically silent and Lucretia was even more withdrawn than usual. "Lucretia, Alice, is something the matter?"

The two looked startled to see Nunnally talking to them, flinched even. "Nothing to worry about, your highness." Lucretia said quietly as Alice opened the door to the room and allowed them to enter, shutting the door behind them. Nunnally was surprised to see the estate's manager, Sancia, standing in her room.

"Miss Edefeldt, what are you doing here?" Nunnally asked, and turned to look at Lucretia and Alice. "What's going on?"

"Nothing to worry about, your highness." Lucretia whispered, a gun in her hand.

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass or any other copyrighted material that may be referenced or stated in this work of complete fiction. I am poor and do not write for profit, please do not sue me.

A/N:

Again, I am not dead. Just having to stay with those bastards really kills the muse. Sorry for the short update and long wait, I'll try to have a more regular schedule, because I really want to finish this story, real life just has a habit of getting in the way.

Addiebiscuit


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